autopilot

/'ɔ:tə,pailət/

Thân thiện

The pilot engages the autopilot during the flight.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • A navigational device: An electronic or mechanical system that automatically controls the course of a vehicle (such as an aircraft, ship, or spacecraft) without constant manual input from a human operator.
   • A mental state: A cognitive state in which a person acts or performs routine tasks without conscious thought or full awareness, often due to habit or repetition.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Device):
  • The pilot engaged the autopilot for the long transatlantic flight.
  • Modern ships are often equipped with a sophisticated autopilot.
• Noun (Mental State):
  • After years of practice, she played the sonata on autopilot.
  • My morning routine is so familiar I do it on autopilot.

Advanced Usage

• "on autopilot": Functioning automatically or without conscious thought.
  • He was so tired that he drove home on autopilot.
• "to go on autopilot": To enter a state of automatic, unthinking action.
  • During the boring meeting, my brain just went on autopilot.

Variants and Related Words

• Automatic pilot: A common synonym and the original term, often used interchangeably with "autopilot."
  • The plane is flying on automatic pilot.

Synonyms

• Device: Automatic pilot, self-steering gear.
• Mental State: Automaticity, unconscious competence, routine, habit.

Related Idioms

• "To be/run/go on autopilot": To perform actions automatically without active thought.
  • When you're exhausted, it's easy to just run on autopilot.

Học thuật

Noun

1. a navigational device that automatically keeps ships or planes or spacecraft on a steady course
2. a cognitive state in which you act without self-awareness
   • she went about her chores on automatic pilot
   • too much of the writing seems to have been done on automatic pilot
   • she talked and he dozed and my mind went on autopilot

Từ đồng nghĩa

• automatic pilot
• robot pilot